The airline lost your baggage. The hotel laundry  ruined your favorite shirt. The taxi driver overcharged you. When you're abroad, sometimes things go wrong. Now you can do something about it! Use these tips when you want to express an effective complaint in English. No matter how unfair the situation, it's best to phrase your complaint politely. In English, you'll sound more polite if you use indirect language. Here are some examples: "I'm sorry to bother you..." Starting a complaint like this puts the listener who may have heard many complaints that day at ease. Use this phrase if the situation isn't that serious. For example, "I'm sorry to bother you, but I wanted a baked potato, not fries." "Can you help me with this?" Everyone would much rather be asked to do something than told! So try phrasing your complaint as a request for help: "Can you help me with this? My shirt came back from the laundry without buttons." "I'm afraid there may be a misunderstanding." This is a polite way of saying, "Your information is wrong. Please fix it now." You'll most likely use this phrase if you made reservations  for a flight, hotel or restaurant, and when you arrive, it's not what you expected. For example, "I'm afraid there may be a misunderstanding. I requested a non-smoking room." "I understand it's not your fault..." Often when you make a complaint, you deal with a person who was not directly responsible for the problem. But the problem isn't your fault, either! This phrase is helpful when you need swift action. Tell the person you're dealing with you understand they're not at fault and then directly state the problem: "I understand it's not your fault, but the airline promised they would deliver my baggage yesterday." "Excuse me, but I understood that..." Using this phrase lets the person know you're well-informed and are suspicious they might be trying to take advantage of you. Don't say, "Hey! You're trying to cheat me!" Instead, start indirectly by stating what you know to be true: "I understood that the taxi... What's the purpose of this passage? A) To give an introduction of life abroad. B) To give suggestions on how to learn English. C) To offer advice on giving complaints in English. D) To offer guides to those who travel around the world.
C

It was Molly's job to hand her father his brown paper lunch bag each morning before he headed off to work. One morning, in addition to his usual lunch bag, Molly handed him a second paper bag. This one was worn and held together with staples   .  "Why two bags?" her father asked. "The other is something else," Molly answered. "What's in it?" "Just some stuff. Take it with you." Not wanting to discuss the matter, he put both bags into his briefcase, kissed Molly and rushed off. At midday he opened Molly's bag and took out the contents: two hair ribbons , three small stones, a plastic dinosaur, a tiny sea shell, a small doll, and 13 pennies... The busy father smiled, finished eating, and swept the desk clean into the wastebasket, Molly's stuff included. That evening, Molly ran up behind him as he read the paper. "Where's my bag?" "What bag?" "The one I gave you this morning." "I left it at the office. Why?" "I forgot to put this note in it," she said. "And, besides, Daddy, the things in the sack are the things I really like -- I thought you might like to play with them. You didn't lose the bag, did you, Daddy?" "Oh, no," he said, lying. "I just forgot to bring it home. I'll bring it tomorrow." While Molly hugged her father's neck, he unfolded the note that read: "I love you, Daddy." Molly had given him her treasures -- all that a 7-year-old held dear. Love in a paper bag, and he missed it -- not only missed it, but had thrown it in the wastebasket. So back he went to the office. Just ahead of the night janitor , he picked up the wastebasket. He put the treasures inside and carried it home carefully. The bag didn't look so good, but the stuff was all there and that's what counted. After dinner, he asked Molly to tell him about the stuff in the sack. It took a long time to tell. Everything had a story or a memory. "Sometimes I think of all the great times in this sweet life," he thought. We should all remember that it's not the destination that counts in life, but the journey. That journey with the people we love... After father heard what his daughter said, he felt  _  . A) regretful B) surprised C) sad D) satisfied
A

When Ann, a grade two student at a well-known school, was pestered   by her classmates to join their group to steal from shops, she was shocked. She was a quiet, well-behaved girl and she did not understand why the girls had approached her. They showed her some of the things they had stolen and said that shop theft was great fun and very exciting. Then they threatened to beat Ann if she did not join them. Ann was deeply troubled. She did her best to avoid the group of the girls after classes, but they often waited for her outside the school and tried to persuade her to come with them. This problem is one which many school students in Hong Kong face. We asked the chairman  of the local-fight-crime committee  what Ann should do in these cases. "First of all, she could try to _ . Being caught stealing from shops could ruin their futures and it is simply not worth the risk," he said. "Young people may think that it is easy to get away with stealing from shops, but more and more stores now have plain clothes detectives who are dressed like customers. I would say shop thieves have a more than ninety percent possibility of being caught. "If they won't listen to her, Ann should turn to someone in charge in school, who can then decide if the matter can be dealt with by her." One of the suggestions to Ann is to   _  . A) report the situation to the police B) ask the local-fight-crime committee for advice C) hire a detective to catch them D) turn to her teacher for help

D